FOOD SYSTEMS OF THE FUTURE: A SYNTHESIS OF REPORTS ON FOOD SYSTEMS TRANSFORMATION

Prepared by Meridian Institute, at the request of and with

support from the Global Alliance for the Future of Food.

VERSION 1: JANUARY 2019; UPDATED JANUARY 2020

Copyright © Global Alliance for the Future of Food, 2020. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.

DISCLAIMER

Food Systems of the Future: A Synthesis of Reports on Food Systems Transformation was commissioned from Meridian Institute by the Global Alliance for the Future of Food in order to explore the current thinking around the visions, strategies, and pathways to facilitate food system transformation. The Global Alliance has chosen to make it available to the broader community to contribute to thinking and discussion about sustainable food systems reform. Any views expressed in this report do not represent the views of the Global Alliance or of any of our members.

CONTENTS

INTRODUCTION …………………………….…..……… 3

OVERARCHING THEMES AND KEY MESSAGES…………………………………………………. 5

REPORT 1 ………………………………………………….. 9 Caron et al. Food systems for sustainable development: Proposals for a profound four-part transformation. 2018.

REPORT 2 ………………………………………………… 10 EAT-Lancet Commission. Food in the Anthropocene: the EAT-Lancet Commission on healthy diets from sustainable food systems. 2019.

REPORT 3 ……………………………………………...… 11 The Economics of Ecosystems and Biodiversity (TEEB).TEEB for Agriculture and Food: Scientific and economic foundations. 2018.

REPORT 4 ………………………………………………… 12 Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). The state of food and agriculture: Leveraging food systems for inclusive rural transformation. 2017.

REPORT 5 ………………………………………………... 13 Food and Land Use Coalition (FOLU). Growing better: Ten critical transitions to transform food and land use. 2019.

REPORT 6 ………………………………………………… 14 High Level Panel of Experts (HLPE) on Food Security and Nutrition of the Committee on World Food Security. Agroecological and other innovative approaches for sustainable agriculture and food systems that enhance food security and nutrition. 2019.

REPORT 7 ………………………………………………… 15 Independent Group of Scientists Appointed by the United Nations Secretary-General. The future is now: Science for achieving sustainable development (Global Sustainable Development Report 2019). 2019.

REPORT 8 ………………………………………………... 16 Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). Climate change and land: An IPCC special report on climate change, desertification, land degradation, sustainable land management, food security, and greenhouse gas fluxes in terrestrial ecosystems. 2019.

REPORT 9…………………………………………….…... 17 Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). Global Warming of 1.5ºC. 2018.

REPORT 10 ………………………………………….…… 18 Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform

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on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES). Global assessment report on biodiversity and ecosystem services of the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services. 2019.

REPORT 11 ………………………………………………. 19 IPES-Food. Unravelling the food-health nexus: Addressing practices, political economy, and power relations to build healthier food systems. 2017.

REPORT 12 ………………………………………………. 20 The Lancet Global Syndemic Commission. The Global Syndemic of obesity, undernutrition, and climate change. 2019.

REPORT 13 ………………………………………………. 21 Poux and Aubert. An agro-ecological Europe: A desirable, credible option to address food and environmental challenges. 2018.

REPORT 14 ………………………………………………. 22 Prato et al. Policies that strengthen the nexus between food, health, ecology, livelihoods and identities. 2018.

REPORT 15 ………………………………………………. 23 Roe et al. Contribution of the land sector to a 1.5ºC world. 2019.

REPORT 16 ……………………………………………... 24 Sustainable Development Goals Center for Africa and SwedBio/Stockholm Resilience Centre at Stockholm University. The African Dialogue on the World in 2050: How can agriculture contribute to meeting the SDGs? Report on a multi-actor dialogue for TWI2050. 2017.

REPORT 17………………………………………………. 25 World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD). Future of food: A lighthouse for future living, today. 2018.

REPORT 18 ……………………………………………… 26 World Economic Forum’s System Initiative on Shaping the Future of Food Security and Agriculture; Deloitte Consulting LLP. Shaping the future of global food systems: A scenarios analysis. 2017.

REPORT 19 ……………………………………………… 27 The World in 2050 Initiative - International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA). Transformations to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals. 2018.

REPORT 20 ……………………………………………… 28 World Resources Institute. Creating a sustainable food future: A menu of solutions to feed nearly 10 billion people by 2050. 2019.

CONTENTS

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INTRODUCTION

These perspectives are reflected in a number of influential, thought-provoking, and topical reports on

food systems and land use published in recent years. In late 2018, at the request of the Global Alliance

for the Future of Food, Meridian Institute reviewed 12 major global reports on food systems

transformation to share with the members of the Global Alliance at their annual gathering in January 2019. With the release of additional relevant reports over the past year, Meridian updated the

synthesis in January 2020.

In total, Meridian reviewed 20 major global reports on food systems transformation published in 2017,

2018, and 2019. This document provides brief summaries of each report, as well as a high-level analysis

of cross-cutting themes. Although the reports present unique visions and strategies, all foresee a

critical need for food systems transformation in the face of a rapidly changing world and underscore that food systems must be drivers – rather than barriers – of social, environmental, and economic

progress.

Meridian used the following criteria to guide the selection of reports:

• SCOPE. We focused on reports that present comprehensive visions, strategies, and pathways for

achieving diverse, equitable, healthy, interconnected, renewable, and resilient food systems of the future.

• SCALE. We prioritized reports that discuss food systems elements, actors, and activities at a global

scale. To complement the global perspective, we included two examples of food systems

transformation in a regional and local context.

• INFLUENCE. We aimed to identify reports from authors and organizations that are well-recognized

and respected as thought-leaders and practitioners in the field of global food systems and

sustainability.

Approximately a quarter of the reports are not exclusively dedicated to food systems, but rather focus on food systems (and their transformation) as one key driver or strategy to address critical challenges

such as climate change and sustainable development.

Food systems should provide healthy food and nutrition security; improve social,

economic, and cultural well-being; provide secure livelihoods; and enhance

biophysical, environmental, economic, and political systems and maintain

them for current and future generations. Yet, today’s food systems all too often

fail to achieve these outcomes. Deep and lasting changes are imperative and will

require dialogue across multiple sectors with a confluence of perspectives to

develop a collective path forward.

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We summarized each report’s:

• VISION for a healthy, equitable, renewable, resilient, and culturally diverse future of food shaped by people,

communities, and their institutions. We include key contextual factors and drivers of today’s broken food systems.

• Proposed STRATEGIES to achieve the envisioned outcomes, and the key drivers of change to deliver those

outcomes (e.g., technological change; policy change; corporate behavior change; consumer behavior change;

reform in agricultural practices) and the scale of those activities.

• Proposed PATHWAYS FOR IMPLEMENTATION, focusing on key activities needed to enable change (e.g.,

engagement of key sectors and stakeholders; governance changes; institutional changes).

The ideas presented in each report do not always fall neatly into these categories, but for consistency and ease of

analysis they are presented through this framework. We acknowledge that these summaries, intended to be concise

and high-level, likely do not capture the full nuance and specificity of each report.

With an increasing and renewed focus by the global community on creating sustainable, equitable, and resilient food

systems, we are likely to see an increase in additional relevant reports. We hope that this synthesis offers a timely and

helpful snapshot of current thinking on the major visions, strategies, and pathways for creating sustainable, equitable,

and resilient food systems.

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OVERARCHING THEMES

AND KEY MESSAGES

VISIONS

Each report presents a unique vision for food systems transformation that mobilizes different actors

and tools at different scales, but all reports agree on a key point: maintaining the status quo is not an

option. Many current agriculture and food systems practices are unsustainable, unhealthy, and inequitable, and bold reform will be urgently needed.

Key elements of the future of food across the reports include food systems that:

• Promote sustainable development by minimizing resource use, causing limited environmental

harm, and improving socio-economic outcomes

• Mitigate, adapt to, and build resilience to climate change

• Foster shared economic prosperity, healthy communities, and socio-political inclusion

• Can adapt to growing pressures from population growth, urbanization, income growth, and

changes in cultural preferences for food

• Are conscious of the disparate impacts of food system externalities on vulnerable communities

• Are supported by cross-sectoral, multistakeholder governance systems

SOLUTIONS AND STRATEGIES

To achieve these envisioned outcomes, each report outlines a series of proposed solutions. There is no

single “silver bullet;” the cross-sectoral nature of food systems of the future means strategies must

concurrently be implemented to target various scales, geographies, and pathways of action – such as

government policy, corporate action, producer behavior change, and consumer behavior change. The

This section summarizes the visions, strategies, and imperatives – or key values –

underlying food systems transformation that surface most prominently and

frequently in the reports reviewed. This is not a comprehensive list, nor does it

assume consensus across the reports, but it attempts to capture at a high level

how major reports envision future food systems and primary pathways to get

there.

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most prevalent strategies for food systems transformation recommended in the reports are summarized below.

REFORM AGRICULTURAL PRACTICES. Food systems encompass more than agriculture, but this stage of the value chain

receives the most focus across the reports given its outsized environmental impact. Most reports agree that industrial

agriculture – due to its adverse impacts on health, environment, and workers’ safety – is at odds with their visions for food systems transformation. As part of a transition away from industrial, large-scale agriculture, the reports focus on

expanding the role of smallholder farmers in food production. The reports also advocate for changing agricultural

practices: agroecology is the model most frequently advocated for, with certain reports highlighting climate-smart,

organic, and regenerative approaches. Although terminology and specifics of implementation differ, these models

encompass similar actions: improve soil health practices; sustainably intensify crops; reduce land, water, and other

inputs in livestock production; reduce/more efficiently use fertilizers; improve water management systems; and

improve rice cultivation – a specific crop called out by a smaller number of reports due to its high CH4 emissions –

including through better fertilizer and water management.

LOCALIZE FOOD SYSTEMS. As noted above, most reports support a greater role for smallholder farmers in the global

food system – a food system that should, according to the various authors, increasingly be regional or local.

Geographically-concentrated food systems reduce the environmental footprint of food storage and transport. They also

capture economic value within the production area, increasing benefits to farmers and other producers. Smaller-scale

markets also facilitate smallholder entry. Many reports also advocate for localized solutions and strategies to food

systems transformation, wherein context-specific approaches should be developed at sub-national and national levels

to incorporate local knowledge and respond to local cultural preferences. That said, many of the same reports also

promote alignment with global agendas such as the Sustainable Development Goals, Paris Agreement, and to a lesser degree the Aichi and other biodiversity targets. They emphasize that the scale of transformation needed is significant,

and thus will require action by global actors, including multilateral institutions and corporations.

IMPROVE LAND MANAGEMENT AND STRENGTHEN LAND RIGHTS. Improved land management can improve the quality

and quantity of food production and reduce environmental consequences of agriculture. Common recommendations

include: limiting conversion of land for agricultural purposes; increasing yield productivity (tied to many of the

agricultural practices mentioned above); building the natural resilience of agricultural landscapes to climate change;

and promoting biodiverse landscapes. The reports also strongly call for protecting and expanding the land rights of

Indigenous Peoples and smallholder farmers, including women.

EXPAND SUSTAINABLE FISHING. The seafood sector was not mentioned in all of the reports, but a number discussed

the need and opportunity to expand sustainable fishing and aquaculture – a source of food and livelihood that, if well-

managed, can cause fewer environmental harms than agricultural crops and livestock and can lessen the burden of

food systems on land.

CHANGE DIETARY PATTERNS. Achieving food systems that are healthier for people and the planet will be difficult, if not

impossible, without changes to diets. Some reports advocate for plant-based diets whereas others primarily call for a

reduction in beef consumption; a number recommend reducing processed foods. Nearly all of the reports emphasize

that dietary patterns must be locally- and culturally-adapted; in particular, populations with high rates of malnutrition should adopt different dietary recommendations. To encourage dietary changes at-scale, many reports point to public

health policies and guidelines, public procurement policies, information campaigns and public advocacy, and expanded

access to affordable healthy foods. Research and development into meat alternatives is mentioned by a few authors.

However, most note that diets are set by individual behavior; beyond advocating for more information for consumers,

few reports detail how to drive or incentivize such significant behavior change.

REDUCE LOSS AND WASTE. Harvest, handling, and processing technologies and practices are commonly-cited

approaches to reducing losses in food supply chains. To reduce demand-side waste, many reports call for more

efficient packaging and encourage changes in consumer purchasing, consumption, and disposal behavior.

SUPPORT RESEARCH AND KNOWLEDGE EXCHANGE. Research is a foundation for food systems transformation –

particularly research that directly involves and serves farmers and helps policy-makers make evidence-based decisions.

Many reports highlight the role that public institutions should play to facilitate access to knowledge and promote

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research that explores solutions for improving the health and sustainability of food systems. The reports place

significant attention on research methods. Rather than research grounded in and limited to Western, academic

settings, research should seek to elevate traditional and Indigenous knowledge and engage local agricultural

communities as active participants in knowledge production and exchange.

ADOPT TRUE COST ACCOUNTING METHODS. Explicit or implicit in most reports is the need to recognize and account for

the negative (and positive) externalities of food systems in economic, research, and political systems. True cost

accounting can inform decisions that more comprehensively address food system challenges and opportunities,

whether in government policy-making or in private sector operations.

REDIRECT FINANCING AND INVESTMENTS. Public-private financing is frequently mentioned as an approach to drive

desired food systems transformations. Governments are called upon to invest in research, infrastructure, and social

policies, and many reports strongly recommend governments reform their subsidy structures to incentivize and reward

environmentally-friendly practices. A smaller number of reports mention the role of philanthropy as well as financial flows from major private investors and banks, which if redirected away from harmful actors and practices towards

desired actions could accelerate and amplify food systems transformation.

STRENGTHEN RURAL ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT. Food systems transformation should seek to bolster rural economies,

many of the reports note. Building the climate resilience of the agriculture sector will be critical. In addition, agriculture

and food sectors should seek to attract youth by providing diversified, safe, and stable employment, which can mitigate

rural out-migration and avoid losing the next generation of farmers. Infrastructural investments and social protections

are also strategies mentioned to improve rural development and smallholder livelihoods.

ADAPT TO URBANIZATION. Although nearly all reports mention urban growth as a pressure point, far fewer detail solutions for how food systems can adapt to urbanization or play a role in improving urban livelihoods. A few reports

advocate for expanding urban agriculture and improving urban and regional planning to distribute socio-economic

pressures and opportunities across a linked rural-urban interface.

IMPERATIVES

Whether implicitly or explicitly, all the reports are guided by core values that guide the “why” and “how” of food systems

transformation. These values are imperative to ensuring strategies are implemented in ways that address and do not

replicate the deep structural challenges underlying today’s broken food systems. With some variation, a few of these “imperatives” recur across many of the reports.

EQUITY. Equity is at the forefront of food systems transformation: nearly every report stresses that future food systems

must benefit and meet the needs of the world’s most vulnerable people. Reforms should focus on eliminating food

system practices and externalities that disproportionately harm those communities. In particular, policies should

protect and uplift the rights and livelihoods of women, smallholders, and Indigenous Peoples; reforms that strengthen

their rights to land and other natural resources are particularly emphasized. Many reports note the deep power

disparities that exist in today’s food systems: certain people are excluded from policy-making; are exploited by food

systems and do not share in their economic prosperity; and are not valued as leaders in knowledge creation and

exchange. Political influence, land, and profits are increasingly concentrated amongst a few major global players. These

power dynamics must be overcome in every pathway for food systems transformation in order to achieve equitable

outcomes.

SYSTEMS THINKING. The “nexus” of multiple issues and actors takes center stage in these reports. Food systems should

be broadly defined and comprehensively addressed: they encompass activities, for example, from the pre-production

phase to post-consumption waste management in addition to the externalities caused by those activities. Those

externalities affect communities that both directly and indirectly participate in food systems. Researchers, policy-

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makers, civil society organizations, media and marketing groups, and many other non-producer actors are also part of

food systems, as they influence knowledge, policy, and culture surrounding food systems. Most reports use a systems

approach that recognizes this expansive definition of food systems to develop their visions and strategies, calling for:

interdisciplinary research and cross-sectoral policies that span traditional issue silos (e.g., health, environment, infrastructure, agriculture, etc.); require the participation of diverse stakeholders; and, acknowledge the many

geographic and cultural contexts that shape the world’s food systems. Notably, most institutions (particularly in

government or academia) are currently largely unsuited to embark upon such transformational change due to their

siloed organizational structures and processes.

MULTISTAKEHOLDER MOBILIZATION AND ENGAGEMENT. Implementation of food systems transformation relies on the

mobilization of a diversity of stakeholders representing different communities and sectors. Inclusion of and

collaboration between multiple stakeholders improve the likelihood that solutions are responsive to real needs and

tackle those multifaceted needs in tandem; will not disparately affect or leave out particular communities; and will be culturally-adapted and publicly accepted, enhancing their longevity.

DEMOCRATIZATION OF FOOD SYSTEMS. Food systems have become more industrialized, globalized, and digitalized,

and as a result, the public has grown increasingly distant from their food value chains. Yet, many visions of future food

systems require the public’s active participation: consumer behavior drives population health, corporate behavior, and

food markets. In addition to public engagement, several reports call for greater public control over resources (including

land, technology, innovation, knowledge, and information) and reduced corporate concentration of power and value. As

part of democratizing food systems, most reports emphasize the need to uphold cultural values in food systems – for

example, through forms of agriculture that align with local traditional practices, strong local markets, and dietary options that account for food traditions and preferences.

TECHNOLOGY AND INNOVATION. Technology may have driven the industrialization of food systems and accelerated

some of their adverse effects, but many reports maintain that technology and innovation have central roles to play in

food systems transformation. Certain agricultural tools, such as those that enhance precision farming techniques,

support the transition to agroecological and other practices. Advances in transportation, processing, and harvest

technologies can reduce loss and waste. Innovations in data collection and diffusion can improve consumer access to

information and improve supply chain management. Most reports caution that technology can exacerbate power

imbalances if it is not made accessible to resource-limited users, and if research and development only favors the needs of corporate actors.

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Food systems for sustainable development: Proposals for a profound four-part

transformation. Caron, P., Ferrero y de Loma-Osorio, G., Nabarro, D., Hainzelin, E., Guillou,

M., Andersen, I., Arnold, T., Astralaga, M., Beukeboom, M., Bickersteth, S., Bwalya, M.,

Caballero, P., Campbell, B.M., Divine, N., Fan, S., Frick, M., Friis, A., Gallagher, M., Halkin, J.P.,

Hanson, C., Lasbennes, F., Ribera, T., Rockstrom, J., Schuepbach, M., Steer, A., Tutwiler, A.,

Verburg, G. 2018. Agronomy for Sustainable Development.

REPORT 1

VISIONS FOR GLOBAL FOOD SYSTEMS

According to the authors of this paper, sustainable

development cannot occur without the eradication of food

insecurity and malnutrition; healthy ecosystems; community

resilience to climate change; and just, equitable governance.

This report envisions future food systems that can – and must –

be key levers for achieving these outcomes, as they:

• Provide nutritious and healthy food for all.

• Encourage sustainable agricultural production and food

value chains.

• Mitigate and build resilience to climate change.

• Boost socio-economic development in rural areas.

Rather than focus exclusively on food production and

agriculture, this report considers broader social, economic, and

environmental issues in food systems to achieve multiple goals

in unison, in particular those outlined in the Sustainable

Development Goals (SDGs) and Paris Agreement. In addition,

the proposed transformations look beyond only negative

externalities to consider opportunities for food systems to drive

positive outcomes.

PROPOSED STRATEGIES

Promote sustainable farming and land use practices.

Agricultural systems, as major contributors to global

greenhouse gas emissions, must coexist with healthy

ecosystems and mitigate climate change. Two examples of

sustainable practices mentioned by the authors are

agroecology and organic farming. They also note that

agricultural systems will need to reduce their resource use and

land footprint to be more “climate-smart.” Climate-smart

agriculture, in addition to lowering the climate impacts of

agriculture, strengthens the socio-ecological resilience of rural

communities and landscapes.

Change food consumption patterns. Demand for food will grow

globally as the world’s population grows, with demand particularly increasing in cities due to rapid urbanization.

Dietary changes and reductions in food wastage will be

necessary to adequately meet these future needs.

Foster socio-economic development. Agriculture is foundational

to millions of livelihoods worldwide, and has the potential to

achieve multiple SDGs if it economically empowers smallholder

farmers, particularly women. Agriculture should provide steady and safe employment and encourage gender inclusion, which

fosters shared economic growth. Notably, social stability and

economic prosperity strengthens a community’s resilience to

climate change.

Invest in rural territories. The authors propose a “rural

renaissance,” which describes a symbiotic relationship between rural and urban areas and is an alternative to the pattern of

urbanization that has deprived rural areas. Key to this shift is

integrated territorial planning; strengthened local institutions to

support people’s well-being; and political and cultural

investment in a strong rural agriculture sector that can mitigate

rural out-migration.

PATHWAYS FOR IMPLEMENTATION

The authors’ use of the term “transformation” is intentional:

their vision calls for radical, collective, and long-term change.

Their proposed pathway for implementation requires the

mobilization of multiple stakeholders, notably those

populations who are most marginalized and disenfranchised.

Power imbalances and conflicts of interest are inherent in

today’s global food systems; the report emphasizes the need to

resolve these prior to launching the multistakeholder processes crucial to the equitable, effective implementation of the

proposed strategies.

Implementation must also occur at multiple levels through

concurrent strategies in multiple sectors. Local and national

action should be planned, implemented, and monitored by local and national leaders, but be aligned with and guided by a

global framework for sustainable development (such as the

SDGs). Importantly, the authors emphasize the need for local

and national interventions to be context-adapted. Researchers

and political leaders play a significant role in developing diverse

place-based solutions rather than relying on one-size-fits-all

approaches.

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Food in the Anthropocene: the EAT-Lancet Commission on healthy diets from sustainable

food systems. EAT-Lancet Commission.2 2019. The Lancet.

REPORT 2

VISIONS FOR GLOBAL FOOD SYSTEMS

Food systems transformation is the single strongest lever to

radically improve both environmental sustainability and human

health, the EAT-Lancet Commission states in this report.

Although the two issues have traditionally been addressed

separately, the Commission stresses that they must be

addressed in unison, particularly given the close links between diets, health, and environment. Accordingly, the vision outlined

in this report describes a future global food system that is both

healthy and sustainable:

• The world adopts a “planetary health diet” that meets

scientific targets for human health and environmental

sustainability, thus remaining within a “safe operating

space.”

• Both the Paris Agreement targets and the Sustainable

Development Goals (SDGs) are achieved through a common

environmental and health agenda, at international and national scales.

The authors project that the estimated global population in

2050 can be nutritiously and sufficiently fed within that “safe

operating space” if the interventions described below are

rigorously implemented in coordination. However, they caution that even small deviations from the proposed consumption and

production practices and health and environmental targets will

result in a failure to achieve the report’s vision for a healthy and

sustainable global food system.

PROPOSED STRATEGIES

Radically change food consumption patterns. The Commission

developed and proposes an optimal diet that meets caloric and

other dietary needs but also results in fewer environmental

impacts compared to current diets. A key component relies

upon reducing animal-source food (notably meat and dairy) and shifting to a diet largely composed of plant-based foods.

Importantly, however, the authors emphasize that diets must

be adapted by individuals and populations to reflect unique

cultural, geographic, and demographic characteristics. For

example, the authors caution that the proposed diet is not fit

for settings with high undernutrition or malnutrition.

Transform food production practices. The report identifies six

environmental targets upon which to focus food systems

reform: climate change, land system change, freshwater use,

nitrogen cycling, phosphorus cycling, and biodiversity loss.

Sustainable agricultural intensification, strict land use and crop

management, and improved fertilizer and water use efficiency

are some of the strategies proposed to transition global food

systems to be more sustainable and to mitigate their climate

impacts. Overall, the reports advocate for a reorientation of

agricultural priorities from quantity alone to improving the

quality of outputs.

Significantly reduce food loss and food waste. This key strategy

is tied to both the production and consumption-side strategies

highlighted in the report. The authors call for halving food loss

and food waste; this will be a critical component of food

systems transformation and the proposed “safe operating

space” targets cannot be met without a substantial strategy to achieve this. Proposed approaches include improving post-

harvest infrastructure, food transportation, and processing and

packaging practices.

PATHWAYS FOR IMPLEMENTATION

The report describes multiple pathways for implementation

that must be leveraged to succeed in a global adoption of a

planetary health diet. Government, industry, and civil society

must be involved. Technological solutions can assist in

improving agricultural production practices and implementing

strategies to reduce food loss and waste. Social systems and institutions, such as health care and education, play an

important role in providing dietary interventions and urging

public awareness and behavior change. Scientific research plays

a critical function to close the gap between evidence and policy.

Political mobilization and policy action are some of the most

important pathways for change identified in the report. International and national commitment to food systems

transformation must result in policies that make healthy foods

more available, affordable, and accessible; in improved

governance of land and oceans; and in other systems-level

implementation of food systems reforms key to achieving a

healthier, more sustainable future.

2 The Commission convened 37 scientists from 16 countries to contribute to the report as advisors and co-authors.

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TEEB for Agriculture and Food: Scientific and economic foundations. The Economics of

Ecosystems and Biodiversity (TEEB).1 2018. UN Environment.

VISIONS FOR GLOBAL FOOD SYSTEMS

Efforts to reform food systems narratives and policies are

inadequate, the TEEBAgriFood authors argue, as they

frequently only focus on the production stage and therefore fail

to address the range of social and environmental issues across

long value chains. In contrast, this report coins a new approach

of looking at “eco-agri-food systems,” which include all stages of growing, processing, distributing, and consuming food. This

approach encompasses both tangible and non-tangible

components of food and agriculture, from culture to technology

to policy to infrastructure. In their vision:

• Food systems provide nutritious and healthy food for all.

• Natural ecosystem services are recognized as fundamental

to agriculture and are protected accordingly.

• Food systems positively contribute to human and planetary

health.

• Leaders across different sectors and areas of expertise

work together to systemically drive change and achieve

healthier, more equitable, environmentally-sustainable

food systems.

• Multiple outcomes are met in coordination: the agronomist

perspective (focused on feeding a growing population)

collaborates with the environmentalist perspective (whose

goal is saving the planet), the sociologist perspective (goal

of sustainable rural livelihoods and social equity), the economist perspective (goal of cheap food through efficient

markets), and the health perspective (goal of healthy diets).

PROPOSED STRATEGIES

Change dietary patterns. Diets that are both heathier and

reduce greenhouse gas emissions are not only necessary but

possible through a reduction in meat consumption and

investments in agricultural biodiversity.

Promote human and planetary health. Policies must restrict the

use of potentially harmful chemicals and instead promote

technology, renewable energy, and materials for safer, more

efficient production, processing, storage, and transportation of

food. In addition, strategies to improve the nutrition of children

during their first 1,000 days should be prioritized as this period

critically affects future health outcomes.

Prioritize social equity, justice, and food security. These should

be core values of our food systems and foundational to

sustainability initiatives, food safety, marketing, trade, diets,

animal welfare, and effective, accountable, and inclusive

institutions at all levels. These institutions should invest in pro-

poor policies that, in part, enhance social protections for those

whose livelihoods rely on food value chains.

Reduce food waste. Cutting food waste is an environmental and

social necessity. A priority should be to increase investments in

affordable post-harvest loss technologies.

Mitigate climate change. To keep global warming within 2ºC,

multiple strategies are necessary, including scaling up

agroecology, reducing food loss, reducing feed production,

changing global dietary patterns, disincentivizing the use of

fossil fuels, and accelerating adoption of renewable energy.

PATHWAYS FOR IMPLEMENTATION

Institutions and initiatives must bridge current silos of research

and policy to implement the above strategies and achieve the

Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in a cross-sectoral manner. New institutions and financing models can also more

effectively manage the eco-agri-food system by coordinating

and leveraging the complementary roles of the state and the

market.

These new governance models must be built upon an understanding of how food systems impact environment and

society. To this end, TEEBAgriFood developed an economic

framework to calculate the “true cost of food” intended to help

policy makers, agri-businesses, farmers, and civil society

organizations manage and transform eco-agri-food systems.

TEEBAgriFood envisions that these actors can use the

framework to better provide nutritious food to all without

unintended environmental consequences.

In the words of the authors, the framework is comprehensive;

in contrast to common simplistic single metrics – that look

solely at production yields, for instance – this framework

evaluates visible and invisible impacts of the food system along

the entire value chain. It is universal; it can be used in any geographical, ecological, or social context and at any scale.

Finally, it is inclusive; it supports multiple approaches to

assessment, while acknowledging that it uses economic and

monetary metrics to evaluate natural, human, social, and

produced capital and food system impacts that may be valued

in other ways.

1 The Economics of Ecosystems and Biodiversity (TEEB) is comprised of more than 150 experts from 33 countries who contributed to the development of this report.

REPORT 3

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The state of food and agriculture: Leveraging food systems for inclusive rural transformation.

Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). 2017.

VISIONS FOR GLOBAL FOOD SYSTEMS

Rural development is essential to eradicating hunger and

poverty, the 2017 edition of The State of Food and Agriculture concludes. While industrialization was once the driver of socio-

economic transformations, today “late transforming” low-

income countries that lag in industrialization (particularly in sub

-Saharan Africa and South Asia) must turn to other strategies. They will depend on inclusive and sustainable transformations

in agriculture that:

• Create on- and off-farm jobs through an attractive and

diverse agro-industrial sector.

• Slow urbanization through employment and poverty

reduction in rural territories.

• Reduce natural resource use while achieving food and

nutrition security.

• Recognize and protect the cultural and social dynamics

inherent in food systems.

• Promote agroterritorial planning to forge a connected

rural-urban interface.

Current trends in these “late transforming” contexts underline

the urgency of implementing the FAO’s vision. Job opportunities

in rural areas are insufficient to keep pace with rapid

population growth, particularly amongst youth; as a result, households are increasingly exiting agriculture and migrating to

cities. Unfortunately, without urban industrialization or other

drivers of economic development, cities cannot support this

population growth either. The smallholder farmers that remain

in rural areas face land fragmentation and natural resource

constraints in addition to the increasing effects of climate

change. They struggle economically from the competition of cheap imported goods but face difficulties entering global

agribusiness due to stricter regulations, requirements of scale,

or barriers in infrastructure or communications. These

problems intersect with the growing challenge of increased

demand for food arising from demographic and consumption

changes.

PROPOSED STRATEGIES

Expand value chains. Stronger agro-industry can foster job

creation (on- and off-farm) and increase food production. It

would create varied, complementary opportunities for farmers to sell, process, and package their goods; offer employment at

midstream and downstream segments of the food system, thus

diversifying the economy; and amplify links between

agricultural rural zones and agro-industrial towns and cities.

Develop integrated planning strategies. The above strategy is

supported through policy interventions, infrastructure, and

investments in planning approaches that connect rural and

urban areas. Smaller cities and towns have the potential to be

points of intermediation along the agriculture/agro-industry

value chain, resulting in more balanced economic growth and

population distribution. The authors suggest a few agroterritorial planning models – such as agro-corridors, agro-

clusters, agro-industrial parks, agro-based special economic

zones, and agribusiness incubators – to achieve these

outcomes.

PATHWAYS FOR IMPLEMENTATION

The report urges that government support for rural

development, and its empowerment of smallholder farmers in particular, is essential to the implementation of food systems

transformation. Common urban biases in public policies will

need to be overcome in order to achieve this more inclusive,

sustainable approach to national and regional development.

The development constraints of rural areas are context-specific – therefore, so must be the policy interventions. That said, the

report identifies several structural reforms that are

foundational to the eventual implementation of the proposed

strategies. The report suggests governments take the lead to:

• Improve rural infrastructure, both physical infrastructure

(e.g. roads) and communications.

• Enact legal, regulatory, and policy frameworks that

improve market effectiveness and facilitate the entry of

small farmers.

• Provide incentives for investments in agroterritorial

strategies.

• Support smallholder farmers by promoting farmer

organizations; clarifying and strengthening land and

resource tenure rights; improving farmer access to

knowledge and technology; and improving social

protection policies.

• Invest in public research tailored to the needs of

smallholder farmers.

REPORT 4

13

Growing better: Ten critical transitions to transform food and land use. Food and Land Use

Coalition (FOLU). 2019.

VISIONS FOR GLOBAL FOOD SYSTEMS

The Food and Land Use Coalition (FOLU) Global Report

identifies 10 critical transitions for food systems transformation

by 2050 that, if implemented with the scale of investment and

reform necessary, could achieve:

• Better environmental outcomes, including no biodiversity

loss, restored ocean fish stocks, and reduced air pollution.

• Better health outcomes, including an end to undernutrition,

a sufficient supply of nutritious food, and reduced disease burdens associated with malnutrition.

• Inclusive development, including higher income growth,

increased yields for low-productivity smallholders, rural employment, and a secure future for Indigenous Peoples.

• Food security, including stabilized or reduced real food

prices.

The report emphasizes that achieving these transformations

will require investment and reform at a significant scale –

amounting to billions to trillions of U.S. dollars. However, these

transformations could also deliver opportunities to businesses

that are financially equal to, if not greater than, than the value of investment.

PROPOSED STRATEGIES

The 10 critical transitions proposed in the report are grouped

into four interdependent and mutually reinforcing layers.

Although all transitions will be necessary, each country should

prioritize their implementation based on local context and

needs.

Layer 1: Nutritious food. The report highlights the need for

diets to shift towards predominantly plant-based foods and

away from highly-processed foods. Consumers should be

empowered to make better-informed decisions about their

diets. Notably, dietary changes should be locally-adapted.

Layer 2: Nature-based solutions. Recommended transitions include adopting productive and regenerative agricultural

systems that combine traditional techniques with advanced

precision farming technologies; protecting and restoring nature

by ending conversion of forests and investing in forest

restoration; and safeguarding oceans, including through

sustainable fishing and aquaculture, natural habitat restoration,

and pollution prevention.

Layer 3: Wider choice and supply. This layer of transformation requires diversifying sources of protein in human diets,

primarily towards aquatic, plant-based, insect-based, and

laboratory-cultured sources. Food – particularly in cities –

should also be sourced from scale-efficient and sustainable

local food economies. In addition, the report calls for reducing

food loss and waste.

Layer 4: Opportunity for all. Three transitions fall under this

category: 1) digitizing food and land use systems, which can

improve producer and consumer decision-making and

strengthen connections across the value chain; 2) fostering

resilient and strong rural livelihoods, which underpin all ten

transitions; and 3) encouraging gender equity and a

demographic transition to a replacement rate of fertility in all countries.

PATHWAYS FOR IMPLEMENTATION

Implementing and achieving the above transitions will require

collaborative, cross-cutting action by:

• Government, which can convene stakeholders, pass health

guidelines, enact fiscal instruments to drive reform,

promote open-source research & development, invest in

public infrastructure, and more.

• Business leaders, who can voice support for government

reform agendas, reshape their supply chains, and adopt

corporate targets in line with the Sustainable Development

Goals (SDGs) and Paris Agreement.

• Private investors, whose instruments and investments can

be leveraged to transform food and land use systems.

• Civil society, including the philanthropic community, which

can shape social movements and drive awareness.

• Multilateral institutions such as the United Nations,

multilateral development banks, and International

Monetary Fund, which can support and inspire

governments’ reform agendas through strategic advice and investments.

REPORT 5

14

Agroecological and other innovative approaches for sustainable agriculture and food

systems that enhance food security and nutrition. High Level Panel of Experts (HLPE) on Food

Security and Nutrition of the Committee on World Food Security. 2019.

VISIONS FOR GLOBAL FOOD SYSTEMS

The HLPE report focuses on strategies to achieve Sustainable

Development Goal 2: ending hunger and all forms of

malnutrition by 2030. The report analyzes strategies to address

food security and nutrition through a systems lens, noting that

a growing world population, urbanization, and climate change

affect all aspects of food systems. The authors outline a vision of food systems that:

• Ensure appropriate food production and reduce loss and

waste.

• Safeguard human and environmental health, political

stability, and better livelihoods with fewer environmental

consequences.

The report focuses much of its analysis on agroecological

approaches. The report suggests that agroecology can ensure regenerative use of natural resources and ecosystem services.

By applying scale-specific, context-specific processes,

agroecology can also address the need for socially equitable

food systems by allowing people to exercise greater choice over

what they eat and how and where it is produced.

PROPOSED STRATEGIES

The report consolidated 13 agroecological principles around

which many of its recommendations are based: 1) recycling; 2)

reduced use of inputs; 3) soil health; 4) animal health and

welfare; 5) biodiversity; 6) synergy between elements of ecosystems including animals, crops, trees, soil, and water; 7)

economic diversification; 8) co-creation and horizontal sharing

of knowledge; 9) social values and diets; 10) fairness; 11)

connectivity between producers and consumers; 12) land and

natural resource governance; and 13) democratic participation

in decision-making. These principles are intended to underpin

locally-adapted strategies based upon local knowledge and the participation of local actors.

Overarching recommendations include:

• Redirect subsidies and incentives to support sustainable

and mixed livestock, fish, cropping, and agroforestry

systems.

• Support participatory and inclusive territorial management

planning, including by supporting customary land rights

for small-scale producers.

• Improve farmers’ access to genetic resources and

intellectual property through international agreements

and national regulations.

• Strengthen regulations on the use of chemicals harmful to

human health and the environment

• Promote healthy and diversified diets through education

and awareness, appropriate food labelling and

certification, support for low-income consumers, and the

use of public procurement policies.

• Support food value chain innovation platforms, incubators,

and aggregation mechanisms that invest in and reward

sustainable food producers.

PATHWAYS FOR IMPLEMENTATION

• Strengthen support for research and reconfigure

knowledge generation and sharing to foster co-learning.

This includes investments in public and private research

and development transdisciplinary research, stronger

agriculture extension and public health training programs,

and improved technology transfer mechanisms. These

actions would help bridge knowledge gaps resulting from past underinvestment in research on agroecological

approaches.

• Strengthen agency and stakeholder engagement,

empower vulnerable and marginalized groups, and

address power inequalities in food systems. This includes

legal resource protections, recognition of gender equity as

a key driver of agroecological transitions, and stronger

producer associations and coops.

• Establish and use comprehensive performance

measurement and monitoring frameworks for food

systems. This includes recognizing true cost accounting

measures and redirecting investments (particularly

agriculture subsidies) to support farms based on sustainability performance metrics.

REPORT 6

15

The future is now: Science for achieving sustainable development (Global Sustainable

Development Report 2019). Independent Group of Scientists Appointed by the United

Nations Secretary-General.3 2019. United Nations.

VISIONS FOR GLOBAL FOOD SYSTEMS

The United Nations’ 2019 Global Development Report focuses

on six entry points with the most promise for achieving the

2030 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs): human well-being

and capabilities; sustainable and just economies; energy

decarbonization with universal access; urban and peri-urban

development; global environmental commons; and food systems and nutritious patterns (the focus of this summary). If

the transformations outlined in the report are achieved, the

food systems and nutritious patterns of the future will:

• Deliver nutritious food to a global population of 9-10

billion within decades.

• Greatly reduce the environmental and climate impacts of

food systems.

• End hunger and malnutrition.

• Address water scarcities.

• Protect life in water and on land.

PROPOSED STRATEGIES

Promote food that meets nutritional and environmental

standards, taking into consideration local contexts and cultures. Social protection floors, regulation and guidelines, and

economic incentives are strategies proposed to promote

affordable, sustainable, nutritious diets.

Transition production and land use practices towards

agroforestry and agroecology; discourage excess use of fertilizers and maximize water use in production; and diversify

species and genetic resources from the field to landscape

levels.

Reduce food loss and waste through regulation of packing,

transportation, and industrial waste practices.

PATHWAYS FOR IMPLEMENTATION

The report identifies a number of impediments that must be

overcome to realize food systems transformation and achieve

of the SDGs. These include institutional deficits (smallholders

have insufficient access to institutional, legal, and financial

support); concentration of ownership, which reduces the

resilience of the global food system and impedes small-scale farmers; widespread damaging agricultural practices that have

degraded land and contributed to GHG emissions; and threats

to food security, including climate change and plant and animal

diseases. To address these challenges and implement the

proposed strategies, the report identifies four levers:

• Governance: Tools include social protection floors and

other social programs, legislation to discourage

unsustainable production practices, and mandatory certification and labelling in supply chains.

• Economy and finance: Tools include insurance to help

smallholders, trade agreements to facilitate universal

access of nutritious and sustainable food, and food pricing

to favor nutritious and environmentally-friendly food.

• Individual and collective action: Tools include awareness-

building around food waste, promotion of meat

alternatives by the private sector in developed countries,

and integrated food and nutrition support and services.

• Science and technology: Tools include information systems

that facilitate farmer access to market and provide

information on climate and production, as well as

innovations in production practices to lower

environmental impacts and improve nutritional quality.

REPORT 7

3 The Global Sustainable Development Report was prepared by an independent group of scientists appointed by the UN Secretary-General, comprising 15 experts from various regions and representing a variety of scientific disciplines and institutions.

16

Climate change and land: An IPCC special report on climate change, desertification, land

degradation, sustainable land management, food security, and greenhouse gas fluxes in

terrestrial ecosystems. Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). 2019.

VISIONS FOR GLOBAL FOOD SYSTEMS

The IPCC report discusses five land challenges: climate change

mitigation, climate change adaptation, desertification, land

degradation, and food security. Agriculture and food systems

appear as drivers and solutions in each of these categories. The

report’s recommendations – or “response options” – to drivers

including population and income changes, changes in consumption patterns, and extreme weather events are

intended to:

• Avoid land use change or avoid creating additional land

conversion.

• Contribute to eradicating poverty and eliminating hunger.

• Promote good health and wellbeing.

• Promote clean water and sanitation, climate action, and

life on land.

PROPOSED STRATEGIES

Land management. Recommendations include improving cropland management, food productivity, grazing land

management, livestock management, agroforestry, soil

management, and agricultural diversification; reducing

grassland conversion to cropland; and integrating water

management practices.

Value chain management through demand management.

Recommendations include reducing post-harvest losses and

consumer and retailer food waste. The report also advocates

for a “contract and converge” model of dietary change that

involves reducing overconsumption of livestock in over-

consuming populations but increasing consumption of certain

food groups within populations facing undernutrition or

malnutrition.

Value chain management through supply management.

Recommendations include increasing sustainable sourcing

practices, enhancing efficient and sustainable food transport,

improving policies for food supply stability, strengthening

urban food systems, improving food processing and retailing, and improving energy use in food systems.

Risk management. Recommendations include managing urban

sprawl (which threatens food production in areas surrounding

cities), diversifying livelihoods, promoting and facilitating the

use of local seeds, improving disaster risk management, and

encouraging risk-sharing instruments such as credit services, insurance, and intra-household risk pooling.

PATHWAYS FOR IMPLEMENTATION

To successfully implement needed transformations in the land sector, a number of governance obstacles will need to be

overcome. The report points to Institutional fragmentation and

lack of engagement between stakeholders at different scales as

factors that prevent effective and transformative change. The

slow speed of most policy cycles delays implementation. On the

technological front, widespread and large scale application of

particular agricultural solutions is limited without the existence of or access to the right technology. The report outlines a few

pathways to implementation that could address these

challenges, but they will require:

• Businesses, consumers, land managers, Indigenous

Peoples and local communities, scientists, and

policymakers working together to define problems, share

knowledge, and identify solutions.

• Connecting science knowledge and on-the-ground

practice, and incorporating local knowledge in policy

implementation.

• Including women as key stakeholders in implementation.

• Deliberately coordinating across multiple scales, actors,

and sectors. Cross-sectoral engagement can be facilitated

by framing land sector actions as strong pathways to

sustainable development, a broader agenda favored by

multiple parties.

• Improving community-based implementation and

engaging farmers, which will require a higher level of social

trust and capital.

REPORT 8

17

Global Warming of 1.5ºC. Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). 2018.

VISIONS FOR GLOBAL FOOD SYSTEMS

Global warming is likely to reach 1.5ºC between 2030 and 2052

– a landmark which would cause disastrous consequences for

the world, as explored through modeling in this report. 1.5ºC is

far from an aspirational vision for the future, but its impacts

would be significantly less severe compared to a 2ºC increase.

The authors’ visions for the next few decades call for:

• Enacting transformational mitigation and adaptation

strategies, including in food systems, to limit global

warming to 1.5ºC and avoid irreversible consequences

from further warming.

• Slowing and eventually halting anthropogenic global

warming in order to minimize expected climate-related

risks to health, livelihoods, food security, water supply,

human security, and economic growth.

Today’s food systems are already impacted by global warming,

shedding light – with less extremity – on the future beyond

1.5ºC. Certain populations disproportionately face significant

climate change impacts: these include poor households,

Indigenous Peoples, and communities dependent on

agricultural or coastal livelihoods. All demographics groups –

particularly in the Sahel, southern Africa, the Mediterranean,

central Europe, and the Amazon – should expect reduced food availability. Crop yields will decrease, as will the nutritional

quality of CO2-dependent crops such as rice and wheat.

Livestock will be affected through changes in feed quality and

quantity, increased disease, and water scarcity.

PROPOSED STRATEGIES

The report proposes multiple actions to limit global warming to

1.5ºC with no or limited overshoot. Transformations in food

systems and agriculture are a priority, though the authors

emphasize that significant action is needed in a wide range of

interconnected arenas to achieve the scale of change necessary to reverse current trends.

Reform land use practices. In order to limit global warming to

1.5ºC, areas of pasture and non-pasture agricultural land

currently used for food and feed crops will need to be

converted into bioenergy sources and into forests, and ecosystem restoration will need to be prioritized. To reduce

demand for agricultural land, the authors suggest:

• Promoting sustainable intensification agricultural

practices.

• Transitioning to less resource- and greenhouse gas-

intensive diets and reducing material consumption.

• Removing socio-economic, institutional, technological,

financing, and environmental barriers to land conversion.

These differ by geography, so specific strategies will need

to be place-based.

Foster positive technology and innovation. Both international

cooperation and national strategies can foster and spread innovative technologies and policies. The most effective

method, as suggested in the report, may involve combining

public support for research and development with policies that

incentivize the development and diffusion of technology aiding

climate action.

PATHWAYS FOR IMPLEMENTATION

A series of enabling conditions are suggested in the report to

facilitate implementation of critical mitigation, adaptation, and

resilience strategies. These include:

Strong multi-level governance and institutional capacity.

Climate adaptation and mitigation strategies must be cross-

sectoral, both incremental and transformational, and occur at

multiple jurisdictional levels. Government and academic

institutions must therefore have the capacity to plan and

execute such transformations. A risk lies in adaptation solutions that result in adverse impacts for sustainable development, but

participatory governance can reduce these risks of

maladaptation.

Transfer and mobilization of finance. Private funds by

institutional investors, asset managers, and investment banks

directed towards mitigation and adaptation strategies are critical, as are public funds and public policies that lower the

risk of these investments for private sector actors.

Public acceptance. Implementing strategies that involve

changing human behaviors and lifestyles will require public

acceptance. To attain needed long-term behavior change, Indigenous and local knowledge must inform education efforts,

information development and exchange, and governance

reform.

REPORT 9

18

Global assessment report on biodiversity and ecosystem services of the Intergovernmental

Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services. Intergovernmental Science-

Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES). 2019.

VISIONS FOR GLOBAL FOOD SYSTEMS

This report explores scenarios and pathways to addressing the

underlying drivers of the deterioration of nature. The report

takes into account the anticipated effects of population growth

as well as changes in the production and consumption of

energy, food, fiber, and water. The report envisions a future in

which:

• Nature is conserved, restored, and used sustainably.

• Other societal goals related to food, water, energy, health,

and human wellbeing for all are met.

• Other environmental goals, notably climate change

mitigation and adaptation, are met.

The report cites the Aichi biodiversity targets, 2030 Agenda for

Sustainable Development, the Paris Agreement, and the 2050

Vision for Biodiversity as global goals guiding the report’s

recommendations.

Agriculture and food systems, as one of the most widespread

drivers of land use change, is one of the focus areas of the

report. The authors consider feeding humanity and enhancing

the conservation and sustainable use of nature to be

complementary and closely interdependent goals, that can be

achieved through the strategies summarized below.

PROPOSED STRATEGIES

Promote sustainable agriculture and agroecological practices,

such as multifunctional landscape planning and cross-sectoral integrated management that supports the conservation of

genetic diversity and agriculture biodiversity. Expand and

enhance sustainable intensification in agriculture.

Improve certification schemes; regulate commodity chains (e.g.

through multistakeholder fora and commodity moratorium policies); and engage in more equitable food value chains.

Encourage dietary transitions, particularly reduced

consumption of animal products in developed countries and

emerging economies.

Reduce food waste. Solutions differ geographically but include

more effective pest control, improved food distribution and

storage, consumer education, and less wasteful marketing

practices.

Localize food systems by closing loops between production, consumption, and waste management, integrating agriculture

into urban planning, and promoting alternative food

distribution options.

Expand food market transparency and improve price stability,

including through public food procurement policies, reducing food taxes and import tariffs, and increasing subsidies and food

-based safety nets.

PATHWAYS FOR IMPLEMENTATION

Trajectories of transformation will vary by context, but the

report identifies a few broad pathways that apply across

sectors and geographies:

• Reform global financial and economic systems to

incorporate reduction of inequalities into development

pathways, adopt true cost accounting, and reduce

overconsumption and waste.

• Recognize the knowledge, innovations, practices,

institutions, and values of Indigenous Peoples and local

communities and include them in environmental governance, such as through customary management and

co-management systems, equitable sharing of benefits,

and access and resource rights in national legislation.

• Promote integrative, inclusive, informed, and adaptive

governance systems that: address power imbalances in

society and decision-making, balance existing and

emerging knowledge, involve stakeholders in policy-

making, and promote integration across sectors and

jurisdictions to overcome segmented decision-making.

The report identifies specific instruments and actions that a

diversity of decision-makers can adopt to advance necessary

transformations. These key stakeholders are intergovernmental

organizations; governments (national, subnational, and local);

NGOs; citizens, community groups, and farmers; Indigenous

Peoples and local communities; donor agencies, science and

educational organizations, and corporate actors.

REPORT 10

19

Unravelling the food-health nexus: Addressing practices, political economy, and power

relations to build healthier food systems. IPES-Food. 2017. The Global Alliance for the Future

of Food and IPES-Food.

VISIONS FOR GLOBAL FOOD SYSTEMS

We have an urgent mandate to reform our prevailing global

model of food and agriculture production, the authors of this

report urge. Millions of people across the globe experience

severe health impacts from (particularly industrialized) food

and agriculture-related causes: employment in hazardous

conditions; exposure to contaminants in water, soil, and air; consumption of unsafe or contaminated foods; unhealthy diets;

and food and nutrition insecurity. These five health risk factors

are compounded by climate change, lack of sanitation, and

poverty – factors that themselves worsen from harmful food

system practices.

The report notes that each of these risk and compounding

factors must be addressed through comprehensive, integrated

approaches to achieve:

• A future food system that provides nutritional food to all

through environmentally-friendly, safe, and fair production

practices.

• Governance of future food systems that systemically

acknowledges the linkages between food systems, health,

socio-economic development, and environment, and

addresses these interconnected issues through

multifaceted solutions.

PROPOSED STRATEGIES

Create an integrated science-policy interface. Policy and science are often siloed, and within each field, many solutions and

research initiatives are one-dimensional, addressing only one

problem or failing to consider the full landscape of interlinked

causes and consequences. By bridging these gaps within and

between policy and science, the use of evidence can support

the development of comprehensive, long-lasting solutions to

social-health inequities.

Apply systems thinking in policy. The science-policy interface

represents a systems approach in itself, but the report also

proposes two other systems approaches:

• A “food-health-climate nexus”: An example is the adoption

of agroecological production processes to replace current

industrial agriculture practices, which are resource-

wasteful, environmentally degrading, and polluting and

lead to human health consequences.

• A “food-health-poverty nexus”: This strategy acknowledges

that health is influenced by many socio-economic

determinants, including poverty, that can be perpetuated by the industrial food system model. Ignoring this nexus in

food systems reform can deepen inequities – for instance,

cheaper food production often implies the exploitation of

low-wage labor (a health risk factor due to occupational

hazards and a driver of poverty) and results in more

processed foods, amplifying problems of malnutrition.

PATHWAYS FOR IMPLEMENTATION

Solutions to develop healthier food systems cannot be achieved

without the democratization of food systems and food policy.

To reform the current power dynamics currently limiting transformations towards an equitable food-health nexus, the

authors advocate for:

Eliminating “blind spots.” Many people most disenfranchised

and harmed in global food systems – migrant workers, for

example – are not seen or heard in policy debates and are underrepresented in research.

Changing who sets the agenda. A minority of powerful actors

largely sets the policy agenda and terms of debate, and may

block necessary reforms that are odds with their interests. A

similar challenge exists in science: global discourse and access to knowledge is determined by those who finance, guide, and

release research and data.

Reconnecting food and agriculture. The growing global culture

in which consumers know little about their food’s supply chain

is an obstacle to participatory, movement-led food systems

reform that protects these key stakeholders’ interests.

REPORT 11

20

The Global Syndemic of obesity, undernutrition, and climate change. The Lancet Global

Syndemic Commission.4 2019. The Lancet.

VISIONS FOR GLOBAL FOOD SYSTEMS

Three pandemics – obesity, undernutrition, and climate change

– collectively represent the Global Syndemic. This is the central

proposition of this Lancet study, which assesses the drivers in

food and agriculture, transportation, urban design, and land

use that have contributed to the Global Syndemic, and outlines

win-win-win strategies that achieve four primary outcomes:

• Economic prosperity.

• Social equity.

• Human health and wellbeing.

• Ecological health and wellbeing.

Guided by a set of principles, the study’s recommendations are systemic in nature; address the underlying causes of the Global

Syndemic and associated policy inertia; forge synergies to

promote health, environment, and equity; create benefits

through double-duty or triple-duty actions; and improve

conditions for socially disadvantaged and discriminated

populations.

PROPOSED STRATEGIES

Actions that jointly address multiple systems create more

fundamental and sustained changes, the report notes; and

because people’s health-related behaviors are heavily influenced by the environments around them, many

recommendations address underlying challenges such as

poverty reduction, environmental sustainability, hunger

prevention, livable cities, and more.

The report ranked a number of health-related actions (that

would address obesity and undernutrition) by their benefits to climate change mitigation and adaptation. Actions that ranked

highly (and thus would be considered win-win or win-win-win

actions) are:

• Strengthening the integration of nutrition within national

policies, programs, and budgets (high mitigation and

adaptation potential)

• Increasing official development assistance and averting

famines by strengthening local food systems (high

mitigation and adaptation potential)

• Improving nutrition literacy and the nutrition workforce

capacity (high mitigation potential)

• Investing in systems for knowledge-sharing among

stakeholders in the food supply chain (high adaptation

potential)

• Supporting community-influenced public transportation

and urban planning policies (high mitigation potential)

The study outlines other “levers” that each addresses an aspect

of the Global Syndemic:

• Strategies to protect the environment: carbon pricing,

pollution regulations, water levies, consumer education,

environmental food labelling

• Strategies to constrain production and marketing of

unhealthy foods: taxation, warning labels, consumer

education, social marketing campaigns

• Strategies to increase the demand for healthy foods:

education, social marketing, government, procurement

practices, taxes, subsidies

PATHWAYS FOR IMPLEMENTATION

Many of the report’s recommendations are focused on

reorienting and refocusing governance systems to tackle the

pandemics of obesity, undernutrition, and climate change

through an integrated, systems approach:

• Think in Global Syndemic terms. Define problems using

Global Syndemic terms, define actions that are double-

and triple-duty, and make poverty reduction a central goal.

• Join up silos of thinking and action. Proactively create

platforms for collaborative work on common Syndemic

drivers, and link initiatives at global, national, and local

levels.

• Strengthen national and international agency governance

levers. Implement national human rights obligations,

accelerate commitments, and create a Framework

Convention on Food Systems modeled after the UNFCCC

or the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control.

• Strengthen civil society investments, including

philanthropic investments, to support national policies

that address the Global Syndemic and, through capacity

and funding, create demand for those policy actions.

• Reduce the influence of large commercial interests on

public policy development, including by strengthening

accountability systems, reducing the influence of corporate

lobbying, and address the concentrated power of large food corporations.

• Focus research on Global Syndemic determinants and

solutions, and learn from Indigenous and traditional people’s approaches.

REPORT 12

4 A full list of members of the Lancet Commission is available at: https://www.thelancet.com/commissions/global-syndemic.

21

An agro-ecological Europe: A desirable, credible option to address food and environmental

challenges. Poux, X. and Aubert, P.M. 2018. Institut du Développement Durable et des

Relations Internationales (IDDRI).

VISIONS FOR GLOBAL FOOD SYSTEMS

Europe will need to feed 530 million people by 2050. In

anticipation of this upcoming challenge, Poux and Aubert offer

a vision and model for a European food system that:

• Nutritiously and fully feeds the continent’s growing

population.

• Efficiently manages scarce resources.

• Promotes health, food security, protection of natural

resources and biodiversity, and climate mitigation.

The European food system is already widely considered to be productive in terms of volume produced, employment, and

trade. It has reduced its greenhouse gas emissions over the

past three decades, partially as a result of more concentrated

livestock farming and higher nitrogen use efficiency. Yet, as this

study points out, this progress has come at high health,

financial, and environmental costs: diet-related diseases are on

the rise as Europeans eat more unbalanced diets; more chemical inputs are used to achieve high productivity; and

biodiversity has steadily decreased. Strategies to transform

Europe’s food systems will need to address and minimize these

issues.

PROPOSED STRATEGIES

Transition to agroecology. The authors’ proposed model to

meet Europe’s food and agriculture challenges is based on

agroecology. A combination of low-input agriculture and a high

proportion of agroecological infrastructure would restore

biodiversity, improve the quality of natural resources, and

reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Intermediate actions to transition to an agroecological food system include:

• Optimize use of local resources (for instance, through

detailed management of nutrient flows at the territorial

level).

• Stop the use of pesticides.

• Dedicate a proportion of cultivated land to agroecological

infrastructures, such as hedges, trees, and ponds.

Improve dietary practices. This agroecological model must be

accompanied by changes in diets, including reduced

consumption of sugar and meat but increased consumption of

fiber and seasonal fruits and vegetables, to meet future

demographic pressures without high environmental costs. The

authors show that – even with a predicted decline in production volume – their agroecology model can meet future needs while

improving health outcomes and respecting cultural

preferences.

End plant protein imports. To transition to a truly sustainable

European food system, the continent must reduce its reliance

on imported food, particularly soy, which maintains demand for products that drive deforestation in other regions worldwide.

The proposed scenario eliminates this demand for imports

through promoting local supply chains.

PATHWAYS FOR IMPLEMENTATION

The report’s primary intent is to prove the technical feasibility of

an agroecological European food system and it focuses little on

pathways for implementation. It does, however, identify the key

public policy areas that would play important roles in building

institutional and political support for implementation:

• Policies on commercialization, trade, and competition. Europe should not be isolated from the world, but

strategies emphasizing competition are not desirable

either.

• Policies on food consumption. This food systems

transformation relies on a reorientation of diets and

consumption behavior.

• Policies on agriculture. Europe needs to reevaluate

allocations of public funds to support this transition.

• Policies on environment and public health. Environmental

and health issues must be integrated in agriculture

policies.

Action should not be limited to these individual sectors; rather,

policy-makers should aim to create an environment of

coherent, integrated policies that enables large-scale

agricultural reform.

REPORT 13

22

Policies that strengthen the nexus between food, health, ecology, livelihoods and identities.

Prato, S., Daño, E., Zundel, T., Li Ching, L., Yoke Ling, C. In Spotlight on Sustainable Development 2018 | Exploring new policy pathways: How to overcome obstacles and contradictions in the implementation of the 2030 Agenda. 2018. Civil Society Reflection Group

on the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

VISIONS FOR GLOBAL FOOD SYSTEMS

Today’s broken food systems are intertwined in a reinforcing

cycle of harmful biodiversity, nutrition, health, and livelihood

impacts. However, future food systems can drive positive

outcomes; the authors envision:

• Global food systems based on the Peasant Food Web. The

industrialized food system model is gaining strength globally, yet it depletes the most resources and causes the

most social, environmental, and public health harm. The

Peasant Food Web, in contrast, is one that would produce

less waste, increase rural employment, improve food

availability and nutritional quality, and decrease

greenhouse gas emissions.

• Food systems transformation that targets multiple goals at

multiple scales while mobilizing multiple actors. This vision aims to address the challenges the authors identify with

the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of the 2030

Agenda for Sustainable Development: although the SDGs

encourage cross-sectoral collaboration, their design and

implementation still rely on delineated institutions and

siloed solutions and thus cannot effectively tackle the

interlinked impacts of food systems.

PROPOSED STRATEGIES

Transition to agroecology. The authors propose agroecology as

a practical systems-thinking, holistic, positive alternative to harmful food systems practices. It diversifies farms and farming

landscapes while promoting soil health and nurturing

relationships between species, and achieves high yields without

the need for chemical inputs. It promotes better nutrition and

food security, builds the environmental and climate resilience

of a landscape, and is localized, which means farmers can adapt

the system to their needs and receive its benefits – turning

agroecology into a mechanism for poverty-reduction.

Empower peasants. Food systems policies and research should

promote the rights, economic livelihoods, and political

enfranchisement of smallholder farmers. Some of the actions

recommended in the report include to support interdisciplinary

research that responds to the priorities of peasants and

includes them as co-creators of knowledge; strengthen the role

of farmer organizations in policy design and implementation;

establish fair wages and working conditions for food and agricultural workers; and reform agrarian policies to recognize

the rights of peasants, fisherfolk, pastoralists, and Indigenous

Peoples to land and other resources.

PATHWAYS FOR IMPLEMENTATION

Strengthening a “food democracy” will be critical to achieving

the report’s visions. This means diminishing corporate influence

in policy-making and increasing government leadership in food

systems transformation. It also describes greater public

participation and influence in food systems transformation. A

few obstacles stand in the way of this system change:

• Dematerialization: The cost of food to consumers is

becoming less related to food’s physical characteristics and

more to its “immaterial dimensions,” such as advertising or

investor profit. The desirability and value of food, similarly,

has less to do with the physical quality of the food and its

production and more with how food is marketed.

• Digitalization: As a result of the digitalization of food

production and commercialization, consumers (and even

producers) are becoming delocalized from their food systems. This digitalization decreases the public’s personal

investment in food systems and renders it challenging for

smallholder farmers to keep up with emerging

technologies and to enter new markets.

• Financialization: Financial actors, corporations, and

technology agents increasingly control everything from

agricultural activities to upstream operations to consumer

food choices. Agricultural resources, including land and

infrastructure or genetic resource patents, are turned into

financial assets unlinked to their physical locations or

actual use.

REPORT 14

23

Contribution of the land sector to a 1.5ºC world. Roe, S., Streck, C., Obersteiner, M., Frank, S.,

Grsicom, B., Drouet, L., Fricko, O., Gusti, M., Harris, N., Hasegawa, T., Hausfather, Z., Havilk, P.,

House, J., Nabuurs, G.J., Popp, A., Sanz Sanchez, M.J., Sanderman, J., Smith, P., Stehfest, E.,

Lawrence, D. 2019. Nature Climate Change.

VISIONS FOR GLOBAL FOOD SYSTEMS

According to modeling conducted and compiled by authors,

transforming the land sector by deploying strategies in

agriculture, forestry, wetlands, and bioenergy could feasibly

and sustainably contribute 30% of global mitigation needed to

deliver on the 1.5ºC target of the Paris Agreement. The

roadmap for land sector reform the study outlines is intended to:

• Achieve the 1.5ºC target of the Paris Agreement.

• Enhance co-benefits across biodiversity, water, air, soil,

resilience, food security, and livelihoods.

• Deliver on other international commitments and policies

such as the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

The report notes that the difference between a roadmap to

achieve a 1.5ºC target and a 2ºC target is significant. In

particular, the latter would require earlier and deeper

reductions in agricultural and demand-side emissions, as well as enhanced carbon removals across the land sector.

PROPOSED STRATEGIES

In reviewing model assessments of greenhouse gas emission trajectories in the agriculture sector, the authors found the

largest reductions would result from intensification of the

livestock sector to reduce enteric fermentation; changing

irrigation and fertilization practices in rice cultivation; and

reducing cropland sols and pastures. Other strategies include:

Carbon dioxide removal. Strategies for carbon dioxide removal

relevant to the agriculture sector include agroforestry and soil

carbon sequestration in croplands, including through erosion

control, use of larger root plants, reduced tillage, cover

cropping, and restoration of degraded soils.

Changes in agricultural practices. These reforms include

improving productivity and reducing resource use in the

livestock sector; reducing production and use of synthetic

fertilizers; improving manure management; reducing and

intensifying cropland and pastures; and improving water and

fertilization management in rice cultivation.

Reforms in consumer behavior and other demand-side

strategies. Shifting diets towards plant-based diets for half of

the global population is a key recommendation in the report.

Public health policies, consumer campaigns, and development of new foods can support this transition. The report also calls

for reducing food waste through consumer campaigns, private

sector policies, supply chain technologies, improved food

labelling, and conversion of waste to biogas. Food loss can be

reduced through improved handling and storage practices,

training, and new technologies.

The authors note that decreasing meat consumption and

reducing food waste will reduce land used for feed and water

use and decrease soil degradation, thus improving resources

key to improving food security.

PATHWAYS FOR IMPLEMENTATION

The report identifies three primary barriers to achieving a 1.5ºC

target: political inertia, weak governance, and lack of finance. In

particular, as these barriers apply to agriculture and food

systems transformation,

• Farmers are reticent to change their practices due to lack

of finance, high transition costs, and low expected returns

from changed practices.

• Demand side measures have proceeded slowly due to

limited awareness and political support, and challenges

eliciting and maintaining behavioral change.

• Reductions in agricultural emissions have been limited by

concerns about negative tradeoffs, such as food security,

economic returns, and adverse impacts on smallholders.

To overcome these barriers, the report emphasizes the

importance of increased dialogue between scientists and policy-makers to bridge the knowledge gap around “no regret”

options for mitigation, and to mobilize political action. The

report also recommends supporting research on breakthrough

technologies and approaches in behavioral science, meat

substitutes, livestock production systems (including new feeds),

improved fertilizers, and seed varieties.

REPORT 15

24

The African Dialogue on the World in 2050: How can agriculture contribute to meeting the

SDGs? Report on a multi-actor dialogue for The World in 2050 (TWI2050). Sustainable

Development Goals Center for Africa and SwedBio/Stockholm Resilience Centre at Stockholm

University. 2017.

VISIONS FOR GLOBAL FOOD SYSTEMS

As participants reiterated throughout this African Dialogue on

the World in 2050, agriculture has long underpinned culture

and livelihoods across the African continent. Food systems

transformation consequently emerged from the discussion as a

key lever to improve social, economic, and environmental

resilience across the continent over the next three decades.

Participants outlined a vision of Africa in 2050 in which:

• Food systems practices are grounded in local values and

knowledge, and food systems policies respect and protect

local cultural values of food and agriculture.

• Agriculture drives socio-economic development. Rural and

agricultural livelihoods are attractive, slowing rural out-

migration, and women and youth participation in

agribusiness increases.

• Land planning and agricultural practices protect agro-

biodiversity and support ecosystem services.

• Increased agricultural diversification and productivity

eradicates hunger and improves nutrition.

PROPOSED STRATEGIES

Achieve gender equity. The agriculture sector – as well as the

national economy – will be more prosperous and foster greater shared wealth if the gender gap is eliminated in social and legal

rights, political participation, and ownership of land and other

assets.

Attract youth. Young people are exiting the agriculture sector to

migrate to cities, calling into question its capacity in the long-

term to meet the increasing demand for food in Africa. Incentives and policies should seek to retain youth in

agribusiness, which will require eliminating the association

between farming and poverty.

Develop and share knowledge. Research and knowledge

exchange was identified as an important strategy for food systems transformation throughout the dialogue. Research is

needed that:

• Balances the new frontiers of technology, science, and

innovation with traditional, Indigenous, local knowledge.

• Is place-based, taking into account the historical, social,

and political contexts of the continent, specific countries,

and individual communities.

• Is led by African researchers, and promotes African

perspectives.

• Supports smallholder farmers, including through

agricultural extension services.

Promote ecologically-friendly agricultural practices and policies.

These include comprehensive land planning; agri-policies that compensate farmers for ecosystem services; policies that

support seed and livestock diversification to replace

monocropping and organic farming methods.

Invest in smallholder agriculture. Smallholder farmers have

been left out of public investments in agriculture, which has largely focused on commercial farming that respects neither

local culture nor environmental health.

Localize food systems wealth. Due to the growth of export-

oriented, commercial agriculture, there remains little

continental control of circulation of money and trade. That value should be concentrated along local and regional supply

chains.

PATHWAYS FOR IMPLEMENTATION

Participants in the dialogue expressed frustration with visions

of “progress” in Africa that exclude the agriculture sector and

particularly overlook smallholder farmers. Implementing the

recommended strategies will require overcoming these

historical, cultural, and governance barriers to change.

Stronger governance of the agricultural sector will also be

needed: poor land tenure systems currently do not offer

security to farmers, agricultural policies are not adequately

implemented and enforced, and smallholder agriculture is

frequently disregarded in national strategy. The development

of agri-policies addressing these limitations should rely upon

the active participation of local communities and will require

strong and accountable institutions.

REPORT 16

25

Future of food: A lighthouse for future living, today. World Business Council for Sustainable

Development (WBCSD). 2018.

VISIONS FOR GLOBAL FOOD SYSTEMS

Proposals to achieve sustainable lifestyles often emphasize the

need to reduce material consumption, which is an unattractive

option for businesses, consumers, and policy makers. This

report aims to prove that a sustainable lifestyle can actually be

better for these groups than an unsustainable one, and

business interests do not need to be at odds with that transition.

The WBCSD’s “lighthouse” – or vision – for a future of food is

one that:

• Respects values of environmental sustainability, including

by reducing waste.

• Acknowledges consumers’ desires and changing market

trends and provides healthy, affordable, safe food.

• Connects people, nature, and food and celebrates food.

• Is transparent, cruelty-free, and adheres to human rights

standards.

PROPOSED STRATEGIES

The report intends to guide businesses to develop sustainable

solutions that are beneficial both to them and to consumers,

and the strategies are oriented towards actions businesses can

take.

Change growing practices. The report notes that demand for

food is increasing with the growing purchasing power of an

expanding global middle class. This trend intersects with

growing scarcity of land and water resources. Proposed

strategies to transform growing practices to meet these

macrotrends are vertical farming, conservation agriculture, and urban farming.

Change production, packaging, and distribution practices.

People’s relationships with food are increasingly unhealthy, as

represented by the quantity of waste produced and diet-related

diseases. Consumers are also becoming more aware of their food systems, demanding healthier and more sustainable food.

Businesses can respond through innovations in smart

packaging, alternative proteins, and waste reduction

technologies, for example.

Enhance consumers’ experience of food. The consumers of the future – and increasingly of the present – pay more attention to

food, which is increasingly becoming a focal point of their

identities and lifestyles. Businesses should offer greater

transparency and information for consumers, and develop

technologies to personalize consumers’ experiences of

shopping for and preparing food.

PATHWAYS FOR IMPLEMENTATION

These strategies primarily rely on companies to reform their

practices across the food system and on the public to adopt

more sustainable behaviors. As companies improve their own practices, they also play the role of convincing consumers that

healthier, more environmentally-friendly food systems – and

diets – is the best option. Because public acceptability is a key

pathway for implementation of the report’s vision, the authors

emphasize that food systems transformation should be guided

by the needs and desires of consumers and value them as

active participants in the transformation. The report

acknowledges that consumers’ preferences may not always align with the envisioned outcomes, but does not discuss how

to reconcile this possible divergence.

Not all action items proposed in the report – such as

eliminating human rights abuses in food systems – rely on

consumer behavior change; they demand significant investment and reform on the part of companies, which can be

motivated through “enabling” factors such as policies and

incentives (both financial and non-financial).

REPORT 17

26

Shaping the future of global food systems: A scenarios analysis. World Economic Forum’s

System Initiative on Shaping the Future of Food Security and Agriculture; Deloitte Consulting

LLP. 2017.

VISIONS FOR GLOBAL FOOD SYSTEMS

This report presents four scenarios for future food systems that

arise from two “critical uncertainties” and their related

implications for health and environment. The first “critical

uncertainty” is demand for agricultural commodities: will

demand be more resource-intensive or resource-efficient?

Secondly, will markets be highly connected or unconnected? Market connectivity is defined as the degree of trade openness,

trust in and resilience of commodity markets, and inclusivity of

technological innovations.

The scenarios also account for “predictable forces of change”

over the next few decades. The most significant of these are demographic changes (urbanization and population growth)

and climate change. These critical uncertainties and predictable

forces of change affect which of the report’s four scenarios for

future food systems is most likely to materialize:

• Survival of the richest (low connectivity, resource-intensive

consumption)

• Unchecked consumption (high connectivity, resource-

intensive consumption)

• Open-source sustainability (high connectivity, resource-

efficient consumption)

• Local is the new global (low connectivity, resource-efficient

consumption)

Each of these scenarios achieves the report’s core values of

food systems inclusivity, efficiency, sustainability, and health to

a different degree (some barely at all). In the “best case

scenario” (high connectivity and resource-efficient consumption), food systems are still vulnerable to weather,

economic and political shocks, and inequality, but:

• Companies and farmers benefit from increased

productivity and have access to more information.

• Global markets are open and stable.

• Sufficient nutritious and diverse food sources are

available.

• Policies support sustainable choices and healthy diets.

PROPOSED STRATEGIES

Support open and responsible markets. Should food systems

lean towards globalization or localization? The report cautions against protectionist trade policies and fragmented markets,

but also notes that today’s global industrialized model of food

production hurts human and planetary health and exacerbates

inequality. The report suggests that global trade and

cooperation, alongside safeguards and provisions for

responsible practices, may be one of the most effective

strategies to tackle food systems challenges and related drivers

of change, such as climate change.

Encourage healthy and resource-efficient consumption.

Consumer behavior has the power to transform global heath

and sustainability. Consumers should be incentivized, enabled, and encouraged to eat more resource-efficient, healthy diets.

Importantly, however, a healthy and nutritious diet does not

always equate to one that is more resource-efficient. This

dichotomy must be bridged to mitigate any negative

consequences of food systems transformation.

Efficiently manage resources. The need to careful manage and

utilize natural resources is reiterated throughout the report. It

suggests strategies to increase yields and food systems

efficiency, but does caution against potential unintended

consequences of this approach: for instance, in one scenario,

the outcome of domestic resource protection is aggressive use

of foreign resources.

PATHWAYS FOR IMPLEMENTATION

Through business. As drivers of innovation in society, the

private sector should take leadership in driving progress in food systems reform. Businesses can and should leverage

technology and other innovations to address health, nutrition,

and sustainability challenges, as well as reform their own

operations to be more resource-efficient. Because achieving the

report’s vision partially relies on stable and healthy market

forces, businesses also have responsibility for contributing to

greater resiliency in global markets (e.g., through increased

transparency and risk-management policies).

Through government. The report calls for governments to pass

“smart policies” through a “whole of government” approach: by

collaborating across traditional policy arenas. Specific examples

proposed include integrating nutrition into education systems,

leading social marketing campaigns to change consumer behavior and promote health outcomes, or subsidizing highly

nutritious crops.

REPORT 18

27

Transformations to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals. The World in 2050 Initiative -

International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA). 2018.

VISIONS FOR GLOBAL FOOD SYSTEMS

This report’s vision for the world in 2050 is grounded in

sustainable development: a joint social and environmental

challenge to build a world that meets human needs within

planetary boundaries. The Sustainable Development Goals

(SDGs) are an important component of that future, but will

require multidimensional and integrated transformations. The report identified six such crucial pathways for transformation:

human capacity and demography; decarbonization and energy;

smart cities; digital revolution; responsible consumption and

production; and food, biosphere, and water. Although these

categories are highly interrelated and must be in order to

accomplish multiple goals, the latter two are most central to

food systems issues.

The authors present a vision for the world in 2050 in which:

• Food systems are based on a circular economy:

consumption and production practices limit natural

resource use, pollution, and waste.

• Food systems cause minimal environmental degradation

and are resilient to environmental changes, included those

caused by climate change.

• Food systems provide healthy and affordable food for all,

eradicating global hunger.

• Food systems create wealth while ensuring no one is left

behind.

PROPOSED STRATEGIES

Reform consumption practices. Healthier, more sustainable

diets (which will require a reduction in meat consumption)

should be encouraged. Consumers should also limit food

waste.

Reform production practices. This includes eliminating

subsidies for harmful production methods, minimizing fertilizer

and water use, and adopting agroecological methods. Reform

will also require more effective regulation of land use, including

to limit future agricultural production to land currently used for

agriculture and protecting all other lands for ecological purposes.

Improve governance and public services. Strong institutions

should enable and improve human capacities and capabilities

through healthcare, education, and fair labor markets.

Governments should develop and maintain essential, strategic

infrastructure in energy, food production, mobility systems, and

more. And finally, governance systems should create an

enabling environment – as well as checks and balances – for

science, technology, and innovation that contribute to future

progress towards SDGs.

PATHWAYS FOR IMPLEMENTATION

Many of today’s sustainable development strategies are one-

dimensional and insufficiently bold; “Sustainable development

is not a self-organizing property of market-based economic

systems,” the authors denounce. To achieve the intended

outcomes, proposed transformations must be scaled up and

catalyze multiple actors and mechanisms:

• Key drivers of sustainability transformations: political

institutions (to provide public goods and services); social

institutions (to propagate social norms and cultural

values); and knowledge organizations (to incubate

creativity and innovation).

• Key instruments: economic (e.g., fiscal frameworks,

regulations and mandates); political (e.g., government-led

integrated planning, public-private partnerships,

international cooperation); and social (media, changing

norms and culture, greater social equality).

A range of obstacles currently limits the capacity of these

institutions and tools to embark upon transformational change.

The divergent interests of diverse actors are one challenge: for

instance, companies that benefit from unsustainable practices

in the short-term control significant financial and political

capital, holding sway over opportunities for major reform. Another challenge is the current limited capacity of

governments to design and implement policies that look

decades ahead, balance multiple stakeholders, and are cross-

sectoral. Finally, the report identifies the public resistance to

change. These sustainability transformations will likely disrupt

the status quo. Indeed, they fundamentally must be disruptive

if they are to bridge the growing gap between our current

unsustainable practices and a healthy, ecological future that can sustain a growing global population. Such disruption may

not be politically popular, especially if it demands individual

behavior change.

REPORT 19

28

Creating a sustainable food future: A menu of solutions to feed nearly 10 billion people by

2050. World Resources Institute. 2019.

VISIONS FOR GLOBAL FOOD SYSTEMS

Population growth and income growth will drive a major

increase in demand for food – particularly animal-based food –

over the next thirty years, this report predicts. To tackle this

growing crisis, the report presents 22 broad strategies to

achieve global food systems by 2050 that:

• Meet growing demands for food.

• Reduce and avoid deforestation.

• Reforest or restore abandoned and unproductive land.

• Achieve the three goals above in ways that protect the

climate, promote economic development, and reduce

poverty.

To realize this vision, food systems will also need to achieve

three overarching objectives: 1) Close the food gap, or the

difference between the quantity of food produced today and

the quantity that will be required to meet demand in 2050; 2)

Close the land gap, or the difference between the land area

dedicated to agriculture globally today and the area that will be

required in 2050; and 3) Close the greenhouse gas mitigation

gap, or the difference between anticipated GHG emissions from agriculture in 2050 and the maximum level of emissions

allotted to agriculture to maintain global warming below 2ºC.

PROPOSED STRATEGIES

Protect and restore natural ecosystems. Avoiding agricultural

expansion is a key priority of the report. The authors

recommend boosting productivity and linking governance to

productivity gains and avoided agricultural expansion;

conserving and restoring peatlands, and reforesting

abandoned, unproductive, and liberated agricultural lands.

Improve natural resource use efficiency. This is identified as the

single most important step for meeting both food production

and environmental goals. Efforts to increase agricultural yields

must be linked with legal land protections to prevent land

conversion and agricultural expansion. Improved water

management will also be essential.

Slow growth in demand for food and other agricultural

products. This will require reducing food loss and waste;

shifting diets away from meat towards plant-based foods;

avoiding the diversion of edible crops and agricultural land into

bioenergy production; and accelerating voluntary reductions in

fertility levels by improving women’s access to education and healthcare in the Global South.

Increase food supply (without expanding agricultural land). This

should include increasing livestock and pasture productivity

through improved breeding, soil and water management, feed

quality, grazing management, and other practices. Existing

cropland should be maximized.

Increase fish supply. This includes expanding and improving

aquaculture and wild fisheries management.

Reduce climate impact of agricultural production. The authors

recommend protecting and restoring forests, savannas, and

peatlands as a key climate mitigation strategy. Agricultural

practices and new technologies to reduce GHG emissions and

improve agricultural energy efficiency will also be necessary to

limit the negative climate impact of food systems.

PATHWAYS FOR IMPLEMENTATION

The authors identify government policy and technological

innovation as two of the most essential pathways and tools to

implement the proposed strategies. Governments play key

roles to:

• Shape culture and the consumption environment through

public policy.

• Protect the environment by managing natural resource

use and regulating manufacturers and industrial

producers.

• Provide social services (particularly education and

reproductive health).

• Provide technical and financial assistance to farmers to

support their transition to more sustainable practices.

• Pass regulations that spur innovation in the private sector.

The authors note that this last role is particularly important:

cost-effective technological innovations could transform the

world’s food systems at all scales and stages. The report

particularly identifies promising opportunities in:

• Product innovation (e.g., plant-based meat substitutes,

safer fertilizers and organic sprays)

• Farming technologies (e.g., crop breeding methods,

additives that lower methane emissions from livestock)

• Processing and handling technologies to reduce waste

(e.g., methods to prevent decomposition without

refrigeration)

REPORT 20

29

Global Alliance for the Future of Food, 2020.